A great example of leadership, at the governmental level, Peru makes a major announcement. It is a truly rare occasion in the world these days, shows the South American nation of Peru banning GMOs. Peru claims it has yet to be contaminated by the import, cultivation, or breeding of any genetically-modified (GM) crops. That is at least not openly, unlike some of its nearby neighbors like Brazil, that have openly and willingly accepted them. And the recent decision by Peru’s Plenary Session of the Congress to enact this incredible ten-year moratorium on GMOs, is in direct defiance to previous governmental pushes for legalization, and represents a huge victory for all Peruvians.

Even though a recent scientific test conducted by the Peruvian Association of Consumers and Users (ASPEC), a non-profit organization that promotes and defends the rights of Peruvian consumers, revealed the actual presence of GM contaminants in about 77 percent of packaged supermarket products it tested, at least the country itself will not be formally contributing to the spread of GM pollution around the world.

Anibal Huerta, President of Peru’s Agrarian Commission, stated recently that the ban was necessary to prevent the “danger that can arise from the use of biotechnology”. At least someone in a position of governmental authority is willing to admit the truth about GMOs, mainly that they contaminate the food supply with untested “Franken-genes,” puts an immense chemical burden on the environment, and are scientifically implicated in a wide variety of disorders and illnesses.

He and the many other congressmen in Peru, who supported the moratorium also cited developing agricultural biodiversity as another reason why GMOs needed to be banned. Biotech crops, of course, are responsible for replacing formerly diverse, self-sustaining agricultural systems with endless fields of GM crops like corn and soybeans controlling and overtaking the farmlands. This is a trend that indeed needs to be reversed for the future of our food systems.

“There is an increasing consensus among consumers that they want safe, local, organic fresh food and that they want the environment and wildlife to be protected,” wrote Walter Pengue from the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina, in a recent statement concerning GMOs and their status in South America. “South American countries must proceed with a broader evaluation of their original agricultural policies and practices using these precautionary principles”.

May this landmark decision be a guiding light for all other countries in the world, as governments see there way clear to developing smaller scale, sustainable and proven natural agriculture models.